NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian wants the national anthem changed to acknowledge Indigenous Australians, saying such a move would be a sign of "respect and dignity".
Key points:
- Ms Berejiklian said she had been "mulling" her decision for "a while"
- The ARLC decided not to play the national anthem before State of Origin clashes this year
- However, that decision was subsequently reversed
Ms Berejiklian said the line "we are young and free" should be changed to "we are one and free" in order to recognise Australia's 60,000 years of Indigenous history.
"I think it's about time we recognise the tens of thousands of years of the First Nations people of this continent," she said.
"I feel for Indigenous Australians who don't feel the national anthem reflects them and their history.
"I think if we say 'we're one and free' it acknowledges that we're not really young as a continent, we're tens of thousands of years old when it comes to human inhabitants."
The Premier's stance comes after a raft of high-profile Indigenous NRL players chose to remain silent during the national anthem before last year's State of Origin matches.
This season, the Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) dropped the anthem for the Indigenous All Stars game after players raised concerns "the words of the anthem do not represent them or their families".
Ms Berejiklian said it pained her that many elite athletes felt they were not acknowledged or represented by the national anthem.
"I've been mulling over this for a while," she said.
"It's not the kind of issue I normally speak out on but when you've had a difficult year and see the resilience and strength of our people, we're capable of so much more.
"I think that it would better reflect us and our Indigenous history if we accept that we have the longest living culture on our continent through the Indigenous Australians, our First Nations people.
"And I think it's about time that we start recognising that in all of our national symbols and all of our national ways in which we represent ourselves and in fact, I think it will make us more Australian because we're acknowledging all of our history."
The ARLC last month backflipped on a decision to scrap the national anthem ahead of this year's State of Origin series, following a backlash from fans.
ARLC Chairman Peter V'landys said the decision to drop the anthem was about the rivalry and tribalism associated with the State of Origin series.
But he acknowledged fans had made their views on the anthem clear and that the NRL acted accordingly.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMibGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvbmV3cy8yMDIwLTExLTExL25zdy1wcmVtaWVyLWdsYWR5cy1iZXJlamlrbGlhbi13YW50cy1uYXRpb25hbC1hbnRoZW0tY2hhbmdlZC8xMjg3MDU2NtIBJ2h0dHBzOi8vYW1wLmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvYXJ0aWNsZS8xMjg3MDU2Ng?oc=5
2020-11-10 22:52:00Z
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